Planning the Modern Family Office
We represent single-family and multi-family offices, ultra-high-net-worth individuals, and related trusts and investment vehicles across the full spectrum of family office structuring and planning services. Our work spans investment platform design, management entity formation, and the development of sophisticated two-tier tax allocation and distribution waterfall frameworks.
We regularly advise families transitioning from informal or legacy structures to more institutionalized platforms by implementing “Lender” model planning. These structures are designed to position the family office as an operating investment management business, with the goal of enhancing deductibility of expenses, aligning incentive economics with market-based managers, and improving overall tax efficiency.
Our Experience
We regularly counsel family offices on:
- Investment platform design, including entity architecture and governance frameworks
- Management entity formation and operational structuring
- Allocation and compensation mechanics across family members, entities, and investment vehicles
- Direct, private, and alternative investments, including complex co‑investment and bespoke structures
- Transitions from family‑centric investment activity to formalized operating investment management businesses
A particular focus of our practice is advising families on “lender model” planning, structures designed to position a family office as an operating investment management business rather than a passive investment vehicle, where appropriate.
Lender Model & Institutionalized Family Office Planning
For families seeking to professionalize their platforms, lender‑model planning can provide a framework that:
- Aligns economic reality with legal and tax characterization
- Supports the treatment of investment management as an operating business
- Helps distinguish investment ownership from investment management activities
- Brings family offices closer to institutional investment manager paradigms, while remaining tailored to family objectives
Our role is to help ensure these structures are deliberate, defensible, and consistently implemented, rather than simply theoretical.
How We Add Value
Our advice is designed to balance technical rigor with real‑world execution, helping families move forward confidently without creating unnecessary complexity.
- Strategic & Tax Planning Benefits
- Risk Management & Defensibility
- Practical Implementation
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A Thoughtful, Tailored Approach
We recognize that no two-family offices are alike. Our approach is highly customized, collaborative, and informed by both the legal framework and the practical realities families face as their platforms grow in scale and complexity.
Whether a family is exploring institutionalization for the first time or refining an existing structure, we help ensure the platform is intentional, defensible, and aligned with long‑term objectives.
Your LP Contacts
Robert Garner
Partner,
Corporate
rgarner@lplegal.com
Adam Garber
Partner,
Trusts & Estates
agarber@lplegal.com
